Bridges

The nation of Zambia is located in southern Africa, covering an area slightly larger than the state of Texas. The Road Development Agency (RDA) manages over 5,000 bridges and culverts on the national road network. These structures are vital to the country’s economy and movement of its citizens. The RDA embarked on a plan to inventory and inspect all of the bridges and culverts in the nation. Multiple teams spent several months travelling Zambia’s roads and collecting the information utilising ruggedised tablet computers with interactive inspection forms. Inspectors were able to quickly enter in all condition and inventory information on each structure. The software includes detailed drop-downs for each field and allowed for the quick upload and attachment of photographs and other files. Users are able to generate individual inspection reports or summary reports for a roadway network from any tablet or networked computer. Additionally, the software also utilises a number of unique formulas that take into account Zambia’s own performance goals and those established by the World Bank development loans and grants. The software’s management component allows for the prioritisation of needs based on the unique formulas developed for Zambia’s specific condition ratings. The system is available on field computers as well as within each district office and the central administration. A number of challenges were overcome related to network infrastructure and lack of available information. This is a project that required considerable ‘out-of-the-box’ thinking and approaches. Attendees will learn of an interesting project with unique components which they may employ in their own systems.